Adapter and booster casing for shells.



N. W'. DINGWALL & C. M. BUDD.

. ADAPTER AND BOOSTER CASING FOR SHELLS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 26,1918.

Patented Mar. 4,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l- MW. DINGWALL & c. M. BUDD.

ADAPTER AND BOOSTER CASING FOE SHELLS. APPLlCATION FILED JULY 26,1918.1,296,171.

Patented Mar. 4, 1919. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2. 132 .4.

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NELSON W. DINGWALL AND CLIFFORD M. BUDD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ADAPTER AND BOOSTER CASING FOR SHELLS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 4, 1919.

Application filed July 26, 1918. Serial No. 246,898.

T 0 all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, NELSON W. DING- WALL and CLIFFORD M. BUDD, citizensof the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New Yorkand State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements inAdapter and Booster Casings for Shells, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to an adapter and booster casing for projectilesor shells, and has as its object to provide an adapter and boostercasing which may be joined together by butt-welding so as to obtain agas-tight joint therebetween and also to reduce the number of difierentoperations required to make the joint, thus materially cutting down thecost of production.

In accordance with the present specifications of the United StatesGovernment, the adapter and booster casing are made separately, thebooster casing having formed at one end a cylindrical flange which fitsin an annular groove in the end of the adapter, and the adapter has askirt or annular fin outside of the groove, and this skirt is swaged orspun about the flange of the casing in order to secure the partstogether. This construction is open to the objection that it requires arelatively large number of operations to form the joint, and the cost ofmanufacture is relatively high because thereof. Furthermore, a joint ofthis old type is not absolutely gas-tight, so that, where used inconnection with gas shells, the gas not infrequently will seep throughthe joint and into the booster casing and then from the casing andconstitute a escape source of danger to persons handling the shell.

In an adapter and booster casing made in accordance with the presentinvention, the time, the expense and waste in forming, machining andfinishing a fin and groove on the adapter and forming a flange on thebooster casing are eliminated; the structure is greatly simplified; andthe joint is easily and cheaply made.

In order that others skilled in the art may readily understand ourinvention, we have illustrated in the accompanying drawings twoembodiments thereof, but it will be understood that our invention is notrestricted to the specific embodiments disclosed.

In said drawin s:

.Qigure It is an eevational view of one em bodiment of our improvedadapter and booster casing.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view thereof.

Fig. 3 isa plan view of the lower end of the adapter shown in Fig. 1before the easing is secured thereto.

Fig. 4: is a view similar to Fig. 2, but illustrates a slightlydifferent construction.

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of the head shown in Fig. 4.

Referring to that embodiment of our invention illustrated in Figsi 1 to3, inclusive, of the drawings, 10 designates an adapter head, having, asis usual, an externally threaded portion 11, so that the adapter may bescrewed into the opening in the nose of the shell 12, a portion of theshell being shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. The outer end of theadapter head is polygonal in cross section, so as to provide wrenchreceiving faces 13. The adapter head has a through bore which iscounterbored in its outer end, and the outer end of this counter boreis, internally screw threaded, as at 14:, so as to receive a bushing 15,which bushing clamps the usual fuse holder 16 in place, as shown in Fig.2 of the drawings. The bushing 15 is internally threaded so as toreceive the threaded nipple of the fuse body 17, which fuse body isshown conventionally by dotted lines in Fig. 2 as it can be of anysuitable or well known construction. The'socket holder 16 carries at itslower end the fuse socket 18 containing a det0nating-charge. Thestructure above described is similar to that now usually employed in themanufacture of adapters for projectiles or shells made for the UnitedStates Government and we make no claim of novelty relating thereto.

Formed integrally with and extending from the inner end of the head 10of the adapter is an annular or cylindrical skirt or lip 19, and thislip is, preferably, devoid of shoulders and the like, and the endsurface of the lip is plain, so as to provide a flat, an-

nular face, designated by the numeral 20 10i welded joint therebetweenrorwell known type of welding apparatus.

' the" casin in that embodiment of our invention shown' in Figs. 4 and5, the adapter head 10 has a lip or skirt'lS towhichthebooster casing 21'iselded, as in the preceding? embodiment, but in this instance 'thehead 10f ofdifieren't construction in that the opening therethrough iscounterbored at'its" opposite ends, and at the'lower end of the outercounterbore .23 is a flange 24 towhich the fuse socket 18 is directlysecured.- The counterbore 23 is threaded at its outer end, as'at 25, soas to directly receive the nipple of a fuse body l7,"shown in-dottedlines in 'Figif l; By counterboring the lower end of Pthe'adapter-lO asat 26, the lip or skirt 19 is of "the same internal diameter as thechamber ofthe booster casing. l 1 t Q The fuse socket 18 has spacedslightly from its I open end a'fold' or'external flange r 27 engaging.the undersurface of-theflang'e y the outer 'end'ofthe socket is bentoutwardly V o to forina flange 28," which is pressed the outer surfaceofthe flange 24.

24 ,"Jandiafterinserting the open end of the socket in the openingthrough the flange 24:,

against It will be"understood that the socket I8 ,is' secured to theflange 2st before the weld ing operation for 's'ec'uringthe;casingQl tothe ski-rt19 takes place; To fill the boosterf easing with an explosive,which constitutes the booster charge, the lower endof '45 charged,

' plug29. V r h v Itwillbenoted that astructure construct- 7 .ed" inaccordance vwith the; presentinven-T 1 the shell-escaping into thebooster casing.

the casing; is open *until the casing is and; sthen' closed by means ofa tion,has;"a "gas-tight joint between the adapter and theboostercasing, so that there is no danger of the gas from'theinteriorof- Gopiesot thi's p'at'e'nt m be obtaiined for five cents i 1"washinsjtomnecflf Furthe more, the lip l9 or 19 can be easily machinedat the same time as the remaining portion ofthe adapter head is being machined, and of course, since this skirt is merely a cylindricalprojection, expensive complicated machinery, experienced workmanship,wastevof materials, time ex pended win-carrying out several successiveoperations thereon, and waste of labor are eliminated or greatlyreduced. The skirt 19 or 19 may be cheaply and quickly formed, thusincreasing the rate ofproduc- 7 tion, while decreaslng the costof'manufacv ture, and these pointslarefof great COIlSld-:

eration in the manufacture of shells because 1 of the colossal scale onwhich shellsarenow' used'ln modern warfare; The cost of pi-e5 paring thebooster casing so that itmay be connected "tO'the skirt 19 or ,19 issubstan-' tially negligible, it-being only necessary to machine theouter end of the casing'so as to provide a fiat'surface." The weldingope'rationjmay be carried out in machines now adapted for thatpurposeyso that the desi'gningofnew machinery for manufactur ingourdevice is not necessary.

It is, of course, understoodthat our in vention is susceptible of'var1ous modlficationsand chan es which would 'be within the spirit ofthe invention without'departing from the scope of the a followingclaims.

.Wha t we nim is I 1 V I '1. In 'COD'lblIlllllQIl, an adapter headhaving a through opening, an internal flange,

and a depending skirt; a fuse socket secured directly to said flange;and a booster casingsecured to saidsklrt by means of a seamlessweldedjoint. V ,7 f 12. 111 combination, an adapter head having athrough opening counterbored at its lower-end, an integral'internalflange; and a skirt providedwitha flat end surface; a. fusesocketconnected directly to said flange; and a booster: casing havinga flatend sur seamless welded joint. ln testlmony 'whereofwe have hereuntoset" our hands. 7

CLIFFORD BUDD. I

NELsoii W." ni GwAL I i face of the samesize and configuration as, theen'dsurface of said skirt, said skirt and easing being secured togetherby means ofa I each; "by-"addressing'lthe Commissioner 51 i'atents.

